This year marks the 25th anniversary of one of the most famous and innovative game franchises around: “The Legend of Zelda.” Nintendo has concluded their year long celebration with the release of “The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword” for Wii, the most highly anticipated Zelda game to date. Fans were worried that this new game would suffer with the emphasis on motion control. I would say that Wii MotionPlus is the best thing to ever happen to the series.
“Skyward Sword” is very different from its counterparts. The game starts off on the floating island of Skyloft rather than the vast lands of Hyrule. Humans who live in Skyloft are partnered up with giant birds called Loftwings, which fly them around the island. They have only heard myths of this place down below called “the surface.” Link and Zelda are actually childhood friends. When Zelda gets sucked down to the ground by a tornado, Link must fly down to “the surface” to save her. The story is more refreshing when compared to some of the previous titles. “Skyward Sword” does end up telling the tale of the creation of the Master Sword, which is Link’s weapon of choice in every game in the series.
The story may be great, but how does this new Zelda game look and feel? “Skyward Sword” is easily the best-looking Wii game to ever be released. The game looks like a beautiful painting. Even though the Wii is not as graphically powerful as its competitors, a beautiful art style can always make a game stand out. As for controls, gamers should have a Wii MotionPlus attachment or a Wii Remote Plus controller before picking it up, as it is required. “Skyward Sword” has the best controls of any Zelda game ever. Swinging one’s sword is as easy as swinging the Wii Remote. One-to-one motion means that one is literally wielding Link’s sword in their hands, which is easily the coolest thing about this game. The game even forces players to beat enemies by swinging the sword in specific ways.
Choosing items is also easier as the player can just hold down the B trigger and point to their item of choice. Anyone can pick this game up and easily figure out how to play.
“The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword” definitely comes close to being the best game in the series; it might even be the best. The controls are absolutely perfect and prove that motion control are not at all a gimmick. The game is beautiful and features a main story lasting over 40 hours of gameplay. The game comes highly recommended for everyone who loves “The Legend of Zelda” or video games in general.
